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Chris Sharma Sends La Dura Dura (5.15c)

Today, Chris Sharma vanquished his long-term project by clipping the chains of La Dura Dura (5.15c). Sharma bolted La Dura Dura [aka The Hard Hard] four years ago at the beautiful limestone cliff of Oliana, Spain; and finally, after a long-fought battle, his dream of sending the route has been realized.

La Dura Dura is now considered the world's hardest sport climb and touts a grade of 9b+ (5.15c), which was proposed by Adam Ondra.Ondra claimed the first ascentof the 165-foot mega-pitch earlier this year on February 7, and felt that it was slightly harder than the world's only other proposed 5.15c--Change--which Ondra established at Norway's Hanshalleren cave in 2012.

Sharma's ascent of La Dura Dura is the second route at a grade of 5.15b or harder that he has completed in less than two months. In early February, Sharma made an impressive first ascent of Stoking the Fire (5.15b), located in the massive cave of Santa Linya, Spain. After sending Stoking the Fire, Sharma told Rock and Ice that he was "super psyched to keep working on La Dura Dura." Now with La Dura Dura finally put to rest, Sharma can focus his energies on his multiple other projects that he told Rock and Ice"are all probably in the 5.15c range."

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